Wednesday, March 30, 2011

The Best I've Ever Had

I hope you'll forgive me for being absent for almost 2 weeks. It seems the time is just flying past me and before I know it, it's been 3 days, then 7, then 10 days and those m&m's cookies are still at the top of my blog. Even though they were delicious and colorful, I was getting tired of looking at them. How 'bout you? I had great intentions of updating sooner but this baby is sucking all the energy out of me. But I'm not complaining because I know how blessed I am to be carrying this miracle. All that means is that you'll hear a little less from me. But when I do blog, I can promise you it will be something good. Really good, like these Meyer lemon-lime bars.

I was going to share with you the birthday cake that I made for my FIL a couple weekends ago, but I made these a few days ago and they were so good they jumped to the top of the list. I made these for a friend as a "thank you". My friend, Lori, brought over some homemade sausage and chicken gumbo and white rice after I got back home from my surgery. After eating take-out for over a week, a homemade meal is just what we needed. Thank you Lori! I know she's a huge lemon fan so I made these especialy for her. But they made so many that I kept a few for myself too :-)

I used 6 Meyer lemons in this recipe, but I didn't quite have enough juice to make the recipe so I added the zest and juice of 2 Persian limes as well. If you've never had Meyer lemons before, they are a hybrid fruit- a cross between lemons and mandarins and aren't quite as tart as regular lemons. They have almost a floral fragrance to them and their skin is smooth, shiny and darker in color. Because they aren't as tart, the addition of the limes perked them up quite nicely. In my opinion they were they perfect combination of puckery citrus and sweet.

I've never made lemon bars before because I've never had one that I really liked. I know that should have made me want to make my own, but I never did. I just assumed they were all lousy and they weren't something I really liked even though I wanted to. But I was so wrong about that theory because I loved these bars. I saw this recipe on girlichef's blog. She raved about these bars and it intrigued me to make them almost immediately. These are a little thicker than the average lemon bar, they have a buttery shortbread crust and the filling is almost like lemon curd, dusted with sugar. If it means anything at all, I haven't had much of a sweet tooth lately, but I had 5 of these! Please make these and totally disregard the fact that they have 3 sticks of butter, 6 eggs and over 3 cups of sugar in them. That's what makes them so good!

I have been disappointed in the lemon bar recipes I've tried in the past...something just wasn't right and one recipe looked good baked but the tart to sweet ratio was way off and I had to throw the whole batch away. I'm going to give these a try...thank you !!!

I've never made lemon bars either since there are so many recipes 'out there' I wouldn't have known where to begin trying! But your endorsement and girlichef's have convinced me that this IS the recipe!

I remember so clearly how the first trimester drains you of all energy-- you will be a busy baker come the second trimester when your energy returns!! you watch!i loove lemon bars so much and I am so excited to make these-- I think for Easter for sure :) hope you are feeling well and getting plenty of rest

I absolutely love lemon bars! They're perfect for this wonderful, sunny Spring weather that we're having. What I love most about your recipe is that it's baked in a 9 x 13 inch pan, as opposed to most which are baked in an 9-inch square pan.

On a personal note, I feel like such a terrible friend. I missed your last couple of posts, so I never learned about your pregnancy. Congratulations, Monica! I am so very happy for you and I will keep you and the baby in my prayers. Many blessings to you. :)

Oh Yeah Baby! Big and Fat and Beautiful! Aren't they just the best? And I love your citrus combo...I believe that you ate five, because I couldn't keep my hands off of them, either ;) Thanks for the link love and putting a smile on my face this morning =) xo

I've been MIA too. I took a trip to see my son and his wife and got really sick a few days after arriving. I'm still recuperating!! It was so bad that I'm going back next month for a do-over! Glad to hear that you're doing well--the tiredness is all a part of the procedure and the end result will be WONDERFUL!!

I love Meyer lemons too, they finally showed up in my grocer last wk too. I am not a huge lemon bar fan either but these look great and the taste you describe surely is what I would be looking for too. Don't worry, we will all be here when you return to normal....and your new normal will never be your old normal. Which is a great thing :)

Looks amazing when I pulled up your blog I saw that you changed the pick and before I even knew what they were I said I need to make those lol Look so good. I think I will make them for my easter party. They look so refreshing :) Thanks for sharing. By the way you take all the time you need to rest. Baby comes first :)Ashleywww.thedailysmash101.blogspot.com

I pinned these and made them this afternoon for a dinner party we had this evening. They were absolutely divine. They didn't have time to cool down completely before it was time to serve them and boy am I glad it worked out that way. Everyone was wowed as was I. Simple to make, great instructions, spot on with the use of parchment paper. Thanks for consistently sharing such yummy things.

Jessica- I really do not have any experience in high altitude baking so I'd hate to give you pointers and still not have htem turn out the way you want them. I'd suggest googling "high altitude baking" and see what you come up with.

What a beautiful blog! This is my first time here, I came by way of Pinterst, and I have to tell you that you are an excellent food photographer and that after I make some of your recipes, I'll probably think you're an excellent cook as well. Really, gorgeous blog. Good Work.

These are almost out of the oven now! (I used regular lemons though, just searched Pinterest for a good recipe.) I ended up making a pan and a half because I needed to use up 8 regular sized lemons. They smell amazing!!

Get Your Copy Today!

Click on the cake to order

Search This Blog

Welcome To My Blog

My name is Monica and I'm a stay at home mom living in central Texas. I like to cook, but baking is my passion. I am an (obsessive) collector of cake stands, cookbooks and bakeware. I make lots of yummy treats and often share my sweet creations with friends, family and anyone else who is willing to be my guinea pig. I have lots of recipes in the archives so I hope you'll stick around for awhile!

All photos are mine unless otherwise noted. Feel free to Pin whatever photos you'd like on Pinterest, but please ask prior to using them on other blogs or websites.

If you have a question or comment, please feel free to Email Me. I'd love to hear from you!